Man convicted of triple murder in St. Louis

ST. LOUIS — A man who fatally shot three adults and critically injured a 7-year-old girl has been found guilty of murder.

Jerome Leon Buress Jr. was convicted Thursday of two counts of first-degree murder, one count of second-degree murder, one count of assault and four counts of armed criminal action.

Prosecutors say on June 1, 2017, Buress walked up to a car and fatally shot 24-year-old Jessica Garth and 27-year-old Derrick Irving in front of their daughters. He then fatally shot 37-year-old Julian Hayes as he tried to escape and shot 7-year-old Deniya Irving in the head. She survived but was critically injured. Her 5-year-old sister was not injured.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the younger girl, now 6, testified that Deniya laid over her to protect her from the bullets.